


Dancing with the Stars

by ChuckTaylorUpset



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Bassian Week, Bassian Week Day 2: First Times, Bodhi despairs at Cassian and Jyn's antihero color scheme, But isn't every fic in this fandom?, Chirrut is an assistant professor in the toph beifong school of making jokes about being blind, Dancing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-20
Updated: 2017-06-20
Packaged: 2018-11-16 11:11:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11251920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChuckTaylorUpset/pseuds/ChuckTaylorUpset
Summary: Bodhi takes Cassian out to dance





	Dancing with the Stars

Bodhi had learned in his time with the empire, in his time growing up with occupation, in living his entire life with anxiety following him like an unwanted stray, and what he had learned was even the worst of emotions were boring.  He had spent strung up on self-hatred and assurance that he was constantly a second away from being seized as a traitor to the empire.  He had spent months after the fall of Jedha having days where he can’t get out of bed, where he has panic attacks that leave him a hyperventilating sobbing mess.  Even in the midst of those panic attacks, there was a part of Bodhi thinking “Really?  Again?  That’s a little bit pathetic isn’t it?”  
Bodhi is tired of feeling terrible.  He is tired of looking over his shoulder for the next wave of loss to hit him.  He is tired of bottling up any mention of Jeha, of sitting on a box of memories waiting for it to explode.

The first time he mentions Jedha, he acts casual.  It’s some off hand comment to Jyn about how he can handle the cold of their mission like a good Jedhan boy.  It feels like stepping into a firefight.  He brings it up more, mentions school days and night markets and when Baze and Chirrut chime in he feels strange and floaty and loses track of the conversation for a little bit when they switch topics but ultimately doesn’t have a panic attack which means it’s a success.  He walks through a market with Cassian when it’s closing up for the day, and it goes well.  At least, until he loses track of Cassian who is scarily good at blending into the crowd and Bodhi is on the verge of hyperventilating when Cassian suddenly appears at his side.  Still, no actual panic attack which means that’s a win.  Which is a large of enough string of successes that Bodhi is ready to do something bigger.

He saddles up to where Cassian is doing maintenance and after a brief hello dives into a kiss, just because he can.  Also because every time he starts kissing Cassian there’s a brief moment of stiffness before Cassian lets himself have the kiss and relaxes into it with his whole body.  Bodhi always wants to make Cassian feel like that, and frankly what Cassian’s response does for his ego isn’t all that bad.

“Let me take you out tonight,” Bodhi says.  

Cassian’s eyes widen in surprise and Bodhi is suddenly starting to think that this is all a terrible mistake.  He hasn’t dated anybody properly since before he enlisted and he’s probably forgotten everything and now he’s gone and mucked it up.

“Unless you don’t want to!” Bodhi says, backpedaling furiously.  “I know you like to stay in and that probably wasn’t a very nice way of asking was it?  I’m sorry I-”

“Bodhi, Bodhi, slow down!”  Cassian says, “Yes, of course we can go out.  What did you want to do?”

“Dancing,” Bodhi says, “I wanted to go dancing.”

Cassian blinks, stunned.  “Okay… I don’t know where we would do it.”

“There’s a place in downtown.  I asked around.”

“Alright then.  I guess I will see you at 1800?”  Cassian asks.

Bodhi nods, and walks away confidently.  Then he turns around and runs back so he can kiss Cassian one more time.

“Can’t wait.  See you at 1800.”

When Cassian arrives at the door of the room of Bodhi and Jyn, he is looke up and down and then treated to dismayed Bodhi.

“Cassian!  Oh, is that what you’re wearing?”  Bodhi asks.

“Is there something wrong?”  Cassian asks, his brow furrowed.

“It’s well…”  Bodhi had forgotten that Cassian had two modes: dressed to look like scum to wind his way to information, and dressed like that while off duty.  “It’s fine.  We just need to add some color!  I’ll ask Jyn.”

At that moment, Jyn comes to the door.  She looks at Cassian and frowns in a way so much like Cassian she might as well have decided to copy it.  “What are you talking about?  He looks fine.”

Bodhi turns to Jyn and takes in her outfit.  The only color she is wearing is a green scarf mixed with so much brown it might pass for tree bark.  “Nevermind,” He says, “Let’s go ask Baze and Chirrut.”

Chirrut answers the door, his robe shifting to reveal brilliant red underneath.  Bodhi smiles triumphantly. 

“Chirrut!  We’re here to borrow some color for Cassian.  Could you get us a scarf or something?”  

“Of course Bodhi”  Chirrut says and disappears back into their room.  He comes back with a black robe.

“Chirrut, this isn’t a scarf and it’s black!”  Bodhi says.

“Is it?” Chirrut replies flatly, and stares ahead with clouded eyes until Bodhi finally gets it.  

“Oh!  Chirrut, I’m so sorry!  I-”

“What’s going on?  Chirrut, why do you suddenly want me to tell you the color of your clothes?”  Baze says in Jedhan.  He looks at Cassian.  “It’s not for him is it?  That boy needs some color.”

Bodhi hasn’t spoken Jedhan in years.  It was standard procedure for the Imperials to ban the native language in favor of Basic, so he’d grown up speaking basic in public and Jedhan at home.  Now he stumbled through the words. “We are going to dancing.  We came by for… something that is not black”

“Dancing!  Baze, we should-”

“Leave that to the young.”  Baze said gruffly and went and fetched a red scarf.  He handed it to Bodhi who in turn wrapped it around Cassian’s neck.  

“How do I look?”  Cassian asks, shuffling uncertainly.

“Terrible”  Chirrut pronounced gleefully.

“Shush.  You look wonderful.  Let’s go.”  
   
The bar they arrive at is just like the places Bodhi first learned to dance in: dingy and of dubious morality.

“This is not what I expected,”  says Cassian.  

“All the places to dance were like this.  Run by interplanetary gangs with enough money to bribe the Imps and make money off of people hiding from the rules.  How did you think I learned to play cards at well.”

 “You mean cheat at cards well.”  
   
“Isn’t that what I said?”  Bodhi says with a smile.  “Come on, I let’s dance.”  
   
He tugs at Cassian’s arm toward the dance floor, and they shuffle together awkwardly.  He puts his arm around Cassian’s waist and takes his hand.

“I’m sorry,” says Cassian,  “I really don’t know how to do this.”

“What, it never came up on your missions?”  In his arms, Cassian stiffens, and Bodhi immediately regrets his comment.  “I’m sorry, I-”

“No it’s okay.  Are you sure I’m doing this right?  We don’t seem to be moving to the music.”

Bodhi shushes him.  “That’s how you know we’re doing it right.  Like teenagers.”

Cassian had never danced as a teenager.  He tries not to feel too bad about being ten years late.  He is stiff in as a board in Bodhi’s arms.  

“Hey,”  Bodhi says, taking his arm off Cassian’s waist to cup his cheek.  “What’s wrong?  Do you want to stop?”

“No, it just feels like everybody is staring.”  
   
“Well they should stare, you’re quite handsome,”  At Cassian’s glare, Bodhi’s mirth fades away.  “Nobody’s staring at you Cassian.  C’mere”  He tucks Cassian’s head into his neck, and hums as they sway together, growing closer and closer to the rhythm of the music.  They dance like they are made of the music.  They dance like they are the only people in the world.  They dance until time stands still and the universe falls away.  They dance like they are free.

**Author's Note:**

> Day 2 of Bassian Week prompt is First Times. I technically followed it. This was originally supposed to be longer and include a panic attack and another scene, but it was cut down so I could squeak in before midnight local time. Let me know what you think!


End file.
